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Grandfather who called Welsh woman an 'English bitch' is convicted of racial harassment JAMES TOZER A grandfather has been given a suspended prison sentence after a court decided calling a woman an "English bitch" was racial harassment. Mick Forsythe found himself in the dock after an argument over a scratched car in Wales degenerated into a slanging match. After refusing to pay to repair the damage to the car, which belonged to Lorna Steele - who, ironically is Welsh - he accused her of being an "English bitch" and stormed off. But he now has a criminal record and is branded a racist after the confrontation in the quiet, mid-Wales market town of Newtown ended up before magistrates.
The 55-year-old ex-lorry driver was given a ten-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months after being convicted of racially aggravated disorderly behaviour. Yesterday he attacked the "politically correct" prosecution as a waste of time and money, while even his "victim" agreed the matter shouldn't have ended up in court. "I find it unbelievable that I've been prosecuted for this," he said. "I'm originally from Northern Ireland, I'm an adoptive Welshman, I've travelled all over Europe as a lorry driver and never had any problems with anybody, and now they're officially calling me a racist. "It's political correctness gone mad. "The joke is that the woman I had the row with isn't even English, she's Welsh. I am absolutely gobsmacked, to be frank." The row has taken nine months to get to court, stemming from an argument on a snowy day last February when Mr Forsythe claims his mind was on the recent arrival of his granddaughter. His bric-a-brac shop is alongside the tattoo parlour run by 32-year-old Mrs Steele and her husband Gavin, and as he parked, his car slipped and struck their Kia, scratching it. He claims he went to offer to pay for the damage, but his trial was told he became abusive and threw insults at the couple - including calling Mrs Steele an "English bitch".
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